The final tragic texts of murdered Ann Widdecombe emerged tonight, possibly pin-pointing the exact moment when her killer struck at her remote Dartmoor cottage.
The former cabinet minister was engaged in a conversation with a Channel 5 TV executive when her messages suddenly stopped without explanation.
A producer was discussing with the former MP her scheduled appearance on Channel 5’s Matt Allwright show on Wednesday afternoon.
In a WhatsApp conversation shared with ITV News, the producer was discussing details about the appearance with Ms Widdecombe and asked her to join a Zoom call from her home.
The WhatsApp chat shows they were regularly exchanging messages between 12.14pm and 12.19pm on Wednesday.
The last message Ms Widdecombe sent at 12.19pm said: ‘Received! Panic over!!’
A WhatsApp ‘double blue tick’ receipt shows Ms Widdecombe did read a response sent at 12.19pm, but did not read any of the subsequent messages from the producer, with the first follow-up sent at 12.48pm.
The producer attempted to call Ms Widdecombe numerous times but received no answer.
The final tragic texts of murdered Ann Widdecombe emerged tonight, possibly pin-pointing the exact moment when her killer struck at her remote Dartmoor cottage
A producer on Channel 5’s Matt Allwright show had been exchanging messages with Ms Widdecombe about her scheduled appearance – before her replies abruptly stopped
At 12.55pm the producer plaintively asked: ‘Hi Ann is everything ok?’
At 1.27pm Allwright confirmed live on his show that Widdecombe was scheduled as a guest, but that she had not turned up.
The show’s production team followed up with Ms Widdecombe’s agent later on Wednesday and again on Thursday.
All of the WhatsApp messages have been passed on to the police.
Devon and Cornwall Police said on Saturday it is believed Ms Widdecombe was attacked on Wednesday at around 12.30pm.
The ex-Tory prisons minister was found dead at her home in Haytor on Dartmoor at around 11.40am on Thursday after sustaining serious injuries.
Ms Widdecombe appeared on TalkTV on Wednesday morning, discussing the by-election in Clacton.
A 26-year-old man arrested on suspicion of murdering Ms Widdecombe was released from custody on Saturday and is no longer part of the investigation.
Assistant Chief Constable Matt Longman said on Saturday: ‘Our inquiries are moving at pace for a suspect who is believed to be a white male.’
Ms Widdecombe was a Conservative MP between 1987 and 2010 for the Kent constituency of Maidstone, later Maidstone and the Weald, and held several ministerial positions in Sir John Major’s government.
Meanwhile, a driver who was reported ‘behaving suspiciously’ near Ms Widdecombe’s home in the hours before her death is being sought by police, according to The Telegraph.
The manager of a garage in Haytor, Dartmoor, said he had alerted police after his colleague noticed ‘something out of the ordinary’ at around 9am on Wednesday, with a dark VW Golf Mk4 parked in what he described as a ‘strange place’.
The car was reported to police shortly before Nigel Farage visited the scene of the alleged murder, where he said he believed the killing had been ‘premeditated’.
The Reform UK leader also said a car was parked on Ms Widdecombe’s driveway shortly before she was found dead.
Officers asked the garage to provide CCTV of the vehicle, but they did not have any, The Telegraph understands.
Police revealed Ms Widdecombe died 24 hours before her body was found lying in a pool of blood at her home in Devon at around 12.30pm on Wednesday, July 8.
A manhunt for Ms Widdecombe’s killer is continuing after a 26-year-old man arrested on suspicion of murder was released from police custody late on Friday night.
One car garage worker in Haytor said: ‘At around 9am I went to go and put the car in a lay-by. (The Golf) was at the top of the lane near Ann’s place. If it was a local they would have parked in the car park or one of the lay-bys.
‘He was doing up his walking boots. He was in his late 20s, maybe early 30s. He was wearing shorts and a T-shirt. I remember thinking “Why is he parked there?” He was halfway out the lay-by.
‘It didn’t look like he fitted in. You don’t see many late 20s, early 30s men around here. He was heading up in that direction (of Ann’s house).
‘They haven’t said anything back apart from the police rang to ask if I have CCTV, which I don’t.’
Leader of the Reform UK party Nigel Farage lay flowers at Dartmoor National Park near the home of Ms Widdecombe earlier on Saturday
Mr Farage claimed that Ms Widdecombe – whom he described as a friend – was killed in a ‘premeditated’ manner, and ruled out her murder being a burglary gone wrong
A police officer wearing a face mask and gloves was seen searching bushes near Ms Widdecombe’s home
Police officers have been carrying out a fingertip search near her property
Floral tributes and framed photo of Ms Widdecombe have been laid near her home
Police remain at the murder scene with a cordon still in place at the property
Ex–Tory minister Ann Widdecombe was found dead at her home in Haytor on Dartmoor on Thursday after sustaining serious injuries
After laying flowers outside Ms Widdecombe’s home on Friday, Mr Farage referred to a car being seen on her driveway.
He said: ‘One theory doing the rounds, I discussed this with the Prime Minister yesterday, is that it was a burglary that went wrong. But the car went onto the drive at approximately 12.25pm / 12.30pm on Wednesday.
‘She’d done one interview in the morning… and she was due to do another one at 1pm. So if you were a burglar, would you literally drive your car onto someone’s drive? You wouldn’t.
‘From what I can see of it, from what I can make out, this was premeditated murder. Whether it was politically motivated, whether it was somebody with a grudge, I don’t think it pays at this moment in time to speculate.’
On Saturday, Asst Chief Constable Matt Longman said detectives were making progress and ‘pursuing a number of lines of enquiry’ but asked members of the public not to speculate.
They added a manhunt was under way for a suspect, believed to be a white male.
‘Our priority remains identifying those responsible and ensuring that all available evidence is thoroughly examined,’ he said.
